Mutant
by labrinthine
Summary: Radiator Springs wasn't supposed to be a tourist stop, it was supposed to be a safe haven. For mutants. Finn didn't know anything about this until he turned out to be a very powerful Mutant. Warnings: mentions of Genocide, language, adult themes, alcohol probably. Humanized. No pairing as of now.
1. Chapter 1

He barely remembers what happened. A grenade was rolled his way, all his friends were behind him. Someone had followed them to Radiator Springs. he remembers focusing on the bomb, and he remembers jumping forward to cover it. He had wanted so desperately to save his family that he would have willingly sacrificed himself, but when his fingers touch the grenade it detonates. flames burst forth and he wishes so hard he could stop it.

something _shifts_.

the fire recedes and the impending explosion is diminished into a sphere the size of a ping pong ball. he holds it like that for as long as he can, and at one point focuses so hard blood begins to spurt from his nose. when he finally releases the ball of energy, it gives off a warm wave of heat, and he's so relieved he feels like he might pass out. He was exhausted after... whatever he had just done. The world was vividly sharp and out of focus at the same time. He recognizes the faint loading of guns and knows he's wasted. whoever had sent for his body had sent along several armed guards, and they would have perfect aim.

he hears muffled shouting that he vaguely recognizes, and watches as a shock of red appears in front of him. It's... Lightning? no! they're going to shoot! he hold his hands up in a weak attempt to move the racer, but he doesn't budge. He's saying something, carefully slow, enunciating each word but there's a ringing in his ears and he can only hear the blood roaring through his veins.

he can hear the sounds of the first trigger pulled, and he feels a little bit of him die. Lightnings body shuddered, at he looks up at the gathering of people behind him. Blood trickles from the corner of his mouth as a good aim hits the side of his throat and scraps at the skin. His body shudders as more clips are unloaded, but he looked far from pained. In fact... he looked more annoyed than anything. more shots rang out and Lightning stubbornly stayed in front of him, shielding him.

the guns start firing nothing but air.

Sarge steps up next to him and nods at Lightning, who manages to pull himself to his feet along with Finn and escort him away from the scene. Finn can hear a rather violent sounding background noise, but as Siddeley reaches them and helps Lightning take his weight he finally falls unconsciousness.

* * *

He wants answers.

His eyes flicker open and he recognizes Doc's pristine clinic. Always in perfect condition. He has a thin sheet laying over him and a pounding headache, but he rights his body and clambers to his feet. He pokes around the barren office and finds no one there. No one to even watch him? he frowns. something's up, and he needed to know what it was.

He quickly dresses in the cloths laying next to his bed and exits the building. where could everyone be? he spots Flos cafe, and decided that it would be his best guess. He starts up a quick pace and makes it there in no time, but things still seem to quiet. He pushes open the door with a jingle, and immediately all eyes are on him. they're all strewn about the Cafe haphazardly.

Flo and Ramone are sitting on the floor playing cards with Sarge and Fillmore, but the Hippie had long ago fallen asleep leaning up against the bar. his cards lay scattered on the floor, but none of his playing partners were all that interested in picking them up. Sarge attempted a smile, but it came out more as a grimace and Flo turned her head to whisper to her fiance.

Siddeley and Holley were the next people he saw. They both rose from the large round booth to help their friend walk. He was still a bit unsteady on his feet and they rushed to help him on the perilous trip to the table. Red, Guido, Luigi, and Lizzie were hanging around in the back of the store listening to her old radio, completely relaxed in their music. Gathered around the round booth was the last few residents of Radiator Springs, and they looked anything but happy.

Mater had fallen asleep too. He was sitting on the floor, leaned up against Doc who was on the outside, of the booth. He glanced up at Finn and scowled at him being out of bed so early. He should have kept resting, but heaven knows that a boy like him will take a moment to think of his injuries... Sally was next, idly chewing a bite of french fry she had swiped off the various plates around her. She looked tired and worried, with deep bags underneath her eyes, but her eyes weren't cast his way, but to her Boyfriend.

Finn physically flinched when he remembered what had happened to the racer. He snuck a glace at the boy and felt sick. He was wrapped up in several balnkets and was surrounded by a large amount of food. He was currently digging into a large plate of fruit salad. On the other sides of that was meat, fish, nuts, vegetables and several other food items. Finn logically concluded that it was all for major blood loss, because the boy had been shot a whole ton and was as pale as a sheet.

Finn wanted to be more surprised that Lightning was actually alive, but he had just single handedly stopped an exploding grenade with the power of his mind, so he felt no obligations to look a gift horse in the mouth. He was shoved into the seat first and was squashed next to the rookie, who smiled weakly at him, before going back to poking at his food.

"You too." Doc said gruffly, motioning towards the food. It was only then that Finn realized how hungry he was.

After the two had their fill, it seemed like it was finally time to get down to business. Doc leaned forward on his elbows and everyone followed suit except for lightning, who continue to lay back against the booth for warmth, but his eyes were dark and intense. quite a bit clearer than before.

Finn took a deep breath and steeled himself.

"What was that?" He asks finally. his voice sounds weak, like he hadn't used it in months.

"A lot of bullshit." Lightning answered back wearily, reaching up to rub at his tired eyes.

"You're a mutant." Holley says softly. Her voice is strained and scared, like she couldn't believe he could keep a secret from her and he looks puzzled.

That couldn't be right. "No," He said slowly, "That's impossible. Mutants aren't real." The look lightning gave him was single-handedly the most sarcastic and cynical look he had ever received. He shifted a little, "CHROME has never had any records on mutants." He defends.

Lightning shrugs, "I wonder why..." He quips darkly.

Finn carefully avoids the bait, and looks at Doc for explanation.

The man runs a hand through his hair, making it more of a mess than it already was. "Sheriffs much better at explaining than me." He confesses. Finn knows the man had taken off to go see his cousins wedding, or something along that line, but he wasn't here now.

"CHROME doesn't have any records of Mutants because they technically don't exist." Doc twisted up his face in thought, "Mutants were persecuted for thousands of years, and there were several secret police forces created in order to weed out and eradicate all mutants. it was a widespread fear of what they could do, and eventually it spread to national government associations like the CIA, FBI, and CHROME. Years and years passed of this, and eventually they erased all lists and records of their killing. They buried it deep, so deep that not even the highest ranking official would remember the words 'operation final stand'." Doc closed his eyes. "No one but the mutants who suffered through it. People who's parents were killed, or were sent to live in specialized areas while they're parents were taken away. No matter what your power, you were a threat."

Finn felt cold. He wanted to ask so many questions. He would blame it on his exhaustion later, but he couldn't stop the way his mouth opened, "Was that what happened to you?"

Doc stared at him for a long, sad moment. "That's what happened to most of us."


	2. Chapter 2

"So," Finn clears his throat awkwardly, "Is everyone here a Mutant?" He asks, finally.

Doc shakes his head. "The only ones without powers are Flo, Lizzie, Luigi, and You two." he nods at the other two agents at the table.

Holley frowns, "Why are there so many Mutants in Radiator Springs?" She asks.

Doc shoots Sally a look, but she keeps her face blank. "Not sure how much we should tell you..." He answers wearily, "We've had government agents here before... it didn't end pretty."

Holley bristles, "Is that a threat?" She asks, voice suddenly poisonous and filled with heat.

"Yes." Lightning replies simply. Holley stares at him dark and angry, opens her mouth to retort and promptly shuts it when Siddeley tugs at her shirt sleeve. He shakes his head and she backs down, but she's still fuming.

"We're a package deal." Finn finally says, "They know whatever I know."

The older man rolls his shoulders a bit, "Radiator Springs was founded by Stanley, Everyone knows that. Only a select few know that he was a mutant- and a rather powerful one at that. His power, well, he called himself a beacon. His presence attracted Mutants from all over the world, and when he created Radiator springs it wasn't to be a tourist stop, but a safe haven. When the government started to chase after Mutants Stanley sent them away, hoping that as long as they were spread out they would be safe. When things calmed down again, he turned his powers back on and began to rebuild.

"As it turns out, only three of the people he sent away survived. Maters parents and Lizzie, his girlfriend at the time. Stanley grew too old for his beacon to reach far... but we still came. He helped us hone our skills... Then Stanley died and they opened the interstate And soon enough Radiator Springs dropped off the map. No more new mutants... until some idiot came speeding through and tore up our road." He smiles fondly at the racer who has the decency to look a bit sheepish, "He got us back on the map... and we've been helping mutants when we can. Giving them directions to other safe havens or helping them with their powers... but they never seem to stay." Doc looks a bit thoughtful, "That's it, I guess." He finishes.

"Okay." Finn says, taking a moment to process the information, "What's everyone's powers?"

"Regeneration." Lightning says casually, as if he were talking about the weather, "Which is why I was able to save you back there."

"But what about all the stray bullets?" he had seen them shoot past them in a flurry of gray metal, so who had stopped those?

"That was Fillmore. He can generate low level Force Fields, big enough to cover us, but he wasn't strong enough to get them to reach you." Sally responds, "And I can bend minds." She adds as an after thought.

"I've got x-ray," Doc says, "But it gives me such a bad headache I don't use it much. Mater can- well, he's basically an airbender. Guido's got super speed, Ramone can dream walk, Sarge's got geological manipulation. He can cause earth quakes and create sink holes, things like that. Red... he can make you do whatever he wants, but he's got to say it to you. He's had a few bad accidents happen before, so he mostly keeps his mouth shut." Doc frowns a little.

"What does bend minds mean?" Siddeley speaks for the first time, and his tone is heavy, but curious.

"Exactly what you think." Sally replies evenly, "I can make you feel sad or mad or angry. I could fabricate a memory out of nothing, and I can take memories too." She says finally. "And i'm not afraid to. If you three turn out to be the bad guys... if you try to ruin what we've so painstakingly created... The last thing you'll remember is _nothing_."

Her voice is soft and genuine, Like she's stating a fact. Lightning leans on her a little bit, "I love you." He says, awestruck at how amazing she is. She smiles at him gently.

"And the Sheriff?" Finn asks.

"Sheriff can sense active Mutant genes." Doc comments, "Which means your powers have just manifested."

"Wait, just manifested? If the genes were in me all along shouldn't I be able to access them even when i was young?"

"Not necessarily," Doc half-answers. A beat passes as he gathers his thoughts, "Some mutations are dormant, some aren't. When they're dormant its like they're sleeping, you wouldn't know they were there unless you looked very closely at your genetic makeup, but under certain moments of high stress or injury the mutations will wake up to help. You caught a grenade and your power knew what to do even if you didn't. Very rarely are mutants born with their powers, usually they manifest when they are needed." He explains, "After the first time they can be trained and honed for personal uses."

Finn nods in understanding, "So powers manifest under specific circumstances? How did your powers manifest?"

Every mutant at the table shifted uncomfortably, not willing to share their stories. "Sarge was in the army." Doc says simply, "there were a lot of stressful moments in combat. Perfect place for powers to manifest. Red was born with his, and as for Ramone... well, every kid had nightmares. So he learned to just walk out of his and explore others. Mater got caught in a dust storm when he was 12 and created an air pocket to survive in, Guido wasn't a popular kid in school, and running fast was kind of a necessity for survival back then.

"As for me, I got stuck in the sewer when I was around 8 and my X-ray helped me figure out when i needed to call for help." He finishes, then motions for Sally to go.

She cast a look at Lightning and he rests his hand on her arm, "After their powers first appeared they, and there parents, were taken to a facility to cleanse them of it." Lightning begins, "Sally's hadn't manifested yet, but her parents were both telepaths. They were taken in and so was Sally. Her parents cast themselves into her mind to help her cope with everything. then they killed her parents and snapped the connection. He powers awakened and she liberated the entire camp." she's holding his hand tight, "Mine showed up when I turned... I cant remember anymore, but I was very young. Maybe 3 or 4 and someone dropped me out of a 3rd story window." Lightning frowns hard, "My parents turned me in and I was sent to a camp in Ohio, I think."

"So, you all went to these... camps?" Siddeley asked, horrified.

"No, Mater was protected with Stanley and Ramones was very inconspicuous." He replies slowly, "But for the most part, yes." he finishes.

"How long..." Finn struggles to organize his thoughts. He feels like a thousand ponds of weight had settled on his chest, "How long did the camps run?" He asks, finally.

Doc detects the hitching in his breath and leans forward, worried. Could there be other side affects with his power? Did awakening his powers also awaken some weird consequence in his body? Was he rejecting the mutation? but wouldn't that have gone into effect earlier if his body rejected it?

Lightning hummed a little in thought, "I was in one of the last camps closed down... the ones with the really high ranking mutations and shit. It was closed when I was around 10. and the first camp was started around, what, 50 or 60 years ago?" he asked.

Finn felt his whole body shudder. He could only imagine what they were like. His stomach rolled and in the span of a few seconds he simultaneously burst into tears and passed out.

His two friends bolted up in shock, worry shining on their faces. Doc sighed, "He's fine." He calmed them and himself, "That's totally normal with new mutants. fluctuating hormones and narcolepsy to help the body adapt." He was just glad it wasn't something more serious. but if the sudden sleeping was happening it meant his body was accepting the mutation fairly well.

Lightning yawned loudly, "He's got the right idea." He comments to Sally before laying his head down on the table and finally letting his overwhelming exhaustion knock him out.


	3. Chapter 3

When Finn wakes up for the second time they havent bothered to move him from his spot at the table. He's been asleep for around 15 minutes, and his whole body feels heavy and groggy. Siddeley and Holley are whispering to each other skeptically and Sally and Doc are doing the same. The moment they realize he's awake, they all turn to face him. Doc looks a little peeved and Sally looks slightly annoyed. Her face turns soft when Lightning unconsciously reaches out for her in his sleep.

She keeps her voice low and quiet so she doesn't wake him, "We've answered all of your questions, now we have a few of our own."

Finn feels dread settle in his stomach like a lead weight. He has a feeling it would have been better to stay asleep. "Like what?" He asks cautiously.

Docs mouth falls open little, "'Like what?'" He mimics is shock, "A small army of men was sent here to kill you! Or did you miss that part?" He asks sarcastically.

"Oh yeah." Finn scratches at the back of his head, "That..."

Doc an Sally gave him an expectant look. He cast a side glance at his friends and takes a deep breath.

"I'm sure you've heard of the recent... ordeal in Italy?" The ordeal Finn was talking about was several organized crime rings on a national fight for power. Arson, murder, an corrupted police forces kept the fights long and brutal.

At their confirming nods he continued, "My team was sent to get Intel on the fights, and nothing more. Unfortunately one of the King pins discovered who we were... and he wasn't happy about it. I had to resort to lethal measures to escape, and it seems his son is seeking revenge." Finn answers, quietly cursing himself for bringing them back here.

"That means that there are going to be more?" Doc asks. Finn nods.

Doc stares hard at the table top. He glances up at the three and studies them for a moment. "We've... we've all been soldiers before." He mutters, "We were children put on the front line of a battle for equality. We were cooped up and cut off from the real world, and we had to fight to survive."

Doc looks up at him intensely. His eyes are dark and decidedly sad, "We've done all we can to escape that. We can't be soldiers again." He look tired and aged.

Sally's face is a hard set mask of indifference, but she agrees with him. Finn is sure she does. And suddenly she looks old and worn. She looks years beyond her age and so very tired. They've all been through so much... It wasn't fair for Finn to drag them into his war. They had worked long and hard for their freedom, he had no right to destroy their peace.

Lightning choose that moment to sit up. Dark circles ringed under his eyes and they were slightly puffy, but he was alert. He chances a glance at his girlfriend, and she stares back at him for a long moment. He finally breaks eye contact and turns to Finn. "I'll fight with you." He says firmly.

Sally looks upset and Doc stares at him open mouthed. Finn reigns his shock in, but he feels something in his chest constrict. "Lightning..." He begins wearily.

Lightning interrupts him easily, "You haven't been with us long, but you've stayed." He says, "And now you're apart of the family." He smiles weakly, "And if i truly didn't think you were here to stay, then I wouldn't have saved you." His voice is sincere. "I protect my family." He finishes softly.

Finn nods at the man. He doesn't trust his voice at the moment.

There's a long moment of silence all around the cafe. "What now?" Holley asks.

Sally sighs, "We get some rest." She says finally, "We regroup, and figure out a battle plan."

Siddeley sits up a little straighter, "Does this mean you're going to help us?"

Sally doesn't answer, but she does shoo Doc out of her way and begin to round up all the Mutants and get them home. They had a long day ahead of them.


	4. Chapter 4

"Sally doesn't really like us, huh?" Siddeley asks the racer.

It's been a day since everything happened. Everyone is gathered at Flos again, this time way more alert and hungry. Flo is busy making breakfast for the entire town while everyone else helps clean up. Lightning has been forbidden by Doc to do anything too laborious for a few days while he recovers, so he's just been shoved onto a bar stool and told to wait. He isn't happy about it, but Sally was very stern about him not hurting himself any further.

Siddeley was busy wiping down the counter, and had decided to start up the conversation. Lightning was actually kind of grateful. If Siddeley hadn't started talking to him he would have gone stir crazy!

"Nah, she's just..." He struggles for the right word, "...protective, I guess."

"Protective?" He asks.

Lightning sighs, "Sally... She liberated her entire camp of Mutants. Including Red and Ramone, and they made the long, perilous journey here _together._" he explains, "Stanley took them in, and Doc basically adopted all the mutants here. They became a family.

"And they lived in harmony for a long time. When the interstate opened up, Sally was almost relieved. Less people meant there was a less chance they were discovered, but they needed customers. When I showed up she tried to convince Doc to just let her wipe my mind and send me on my way... and then I fell into a cactus patch and had to explain why I wasn't hurt." He laughs a little at the memory, "And then suddenly _I_ was a part of the family, and it was a great feeling... but I brought reporters, and in a town with such a high mutant population... someone was bound to slip up.

"One of my old body guards caught Mater making air bubbles. He was good guy, believe me, but he was going to the media no matter what. We trusted him, but he was gonna rat us out. We wiped his mind and Sally 'convinced' him to quit..." Siddeley was staring at him wide-eyed, "Don't give me that look!" He sighed, "This is Sally's _only_ family. Everyone else was killed in the camps. She feels like she needs to protect them, and you guys are threats to everything she's created. This is heaven on earth for her, and if we let you in... she's afraid she cant trust you." He says quietly.

He flashes the pilot a smile, "Just give her time. She'll warm up... eventually."

Siddeley seemed unconvinced. "And the rest of them? When will they warm up?" He sighs out.

Lightning let out a surprised laugh, "You're kidding?" He asks disbelievingly. "You're not..." He amends when he sees the confusion on Siddeleys face. "Just... look around, will you?" He gestures across the diner.

"Look at everything. Analyze it like a spy would, what do you see?" He asks, smiling as comprehension dawns on his face.

"If i didn't know any better," He begins slowly, "I would say that everyone here is very comfortable together. Happy together. Like a big family, but better." He finishes.

"Even the ones who haven't been here that long?" He asks, meaning the spies.

A smile spreads across Siddeley face, "Especially them."

"Don't you see? We've accepted you as family the moment you guys came back. The moment you proved to us you were in it for the long haul. subconsciously or not, you guys are family." His eyes are warm, "That's why most of us were all so willing to help in the upcoming battle. We've fought for our family once, and we're not afraid to do it again."

Siddeley looks... shocked. and grateful. "it's... this is..." He struggles for words, "I've never... had a family. So this is really, good? I guess that the word to describe it?" He smile weakly, a little unsure as to what to say next.

The smile falls off Lightnings face, "You've never had a family?" He asks, very quietly.

Siddeley blinks a little, "Um, no... I was an orphan. Got sent to foster homes a lot." He seems a little uncomfortable talking about his childhood, but keeps talking. "I cant really remember a lot of my childhood, actually. I used to get really bad seizures, so I guess that kinda messed up my memory? I haven't had one since I was 14, so I guess I grew out of them." He shrugged, "But I guess I kinda missed out on having a family."

"Dude that sucks." He says sympathetically, "After all this blows over me and you are gonna take a quality family day." He says seriously. "We're gonna go swimming and to Ihop and movie night! It's gonna be so sweet!"

Siddeley shakes his head as Lightning continue to ramble off cool 'family' thing they could do. He continue to wipe down the tables, but stops for a moment to process the feelings of... of having a family. of belonging.

He likes the feeling.


	5. Chapter 5

"Okay, training day!" Doc announces.

They're all standing in Radiator Springs practice racetrack, with the few non powerful people either on the sidelines or in town. Siddeley and Holley are there out of curiosity, and Finn is awkwardly watching as everyone begins to warm up their own power. Well, most of them. Lightning, Ramones, and Reds are pretty hard to practice. Actually, Red had elected to stay in town. He didn't like his power, and they won't force him to do anything. Lightning was helping Sally warm up by thinking about numbers and people and making her pull them out of his head. Mater was currently trying and succeeding at making the air bubble rides from that TV cartoon he really liked. Ramone was shifting around plastic cups with a marble inside and Making Doc find it. Fillmore and Sarge were alternating between their powers, and Guido was having a 'light jog' around the whole group. Sheriff, fresh off the plane and back from his Cousins wedding, was overseeing the operation.

Siddeley and Holley were on the sidelines looking a little uneasy, but supportive just the same. Finn was a little skeptical at how he could even practice his power... as far as he could tell, if had to do with fire, maybe? he was far from an expert so there was no real stock in his words. He gives his friends a thumbs up and a quick smile.

"Alright!" Sheriff calls, signaling the end of warm ups, "Today our main priority is helping Finn!"

He turned to the spy and smiles softly, "I'm gonna have to get a little personal to figure out exactly what kind of power you have." He explains, "But if you need me to stop or take a break at any point then speak up. I don't want to make you uncomfortable or freak you out. It's a little unsettling the first time."

He takes a step forward and holds his hands out, "Are you ready?" he asks. Finn nods, a bit nervous, and takes the Sheriffs hand.

Immediately everything changes. the world blurs wildly and then changes to a sharp, neon world. the gray blue of the sky is suddenly a bright, garish blue. the sand is the color of a yellow highlighter, and the colors of his friends clothes seemed to be inverted. Strangely enough, they all seemed to be blurred at the edges, and their faces were especially unfocused. a thump passes through this world and he instinctively knows it's his heart beat. his head pulses with the beat, and the colors in this world begin to grow painful on his eyes. needles pierce through his skin and the sun grows brighter and brighter, consuming the neon blue with a blinding white. The sun pulses as another heart beat passes. its too bright.

it's to _bright_.

Finn shudders out a harsh breath and tried to cover his yes with his hand, but the light leaks through his hand. the energy from the sun envelops him and it _burns_. another beat passes and Finn is sure that he's being torn apart. He wants the burning to stop! _Stop_! **_Stop_**!

He feels the same shift as when the grenade rolled, and suddenly it's not so bright. He feels warm and fresh, and when he looks down at his skin it's glowing. not a bright, painful glow but a soft warm one. the world is bleeding back into the previous neons, but the blur around his friends is gone. A heart beat passes softly across the sky, Finn feels very peaceful.

He feels Sheriffs hand pulling out of his own and a he wonders if they're done? Sheriff breaks the connection.

Finn opens his eyes slowly. He really cant remember ever closing them, and he also cant remember getting on his knees. Siddeley is kneeling next to him, worry across his features. Finns got a death grip on his arms to keep from collapsing. Mater is on the other side, holding Finn steady. The other have backed up to give him air, but he still feels very cramped. Noticing the Finn was coherent, he immediately pulls away and tugs Siddeley with him. He remembers the first time Sheriff had done it to him, and all he wanted was breathing space after.

Hesitantly Siddeley followed Mater back, still keeping his eyes glued to Finn.

Finn was both grateful and unhappy that they had left. He needed the space more than life itself, but their presence had been comforting. The sky was a baby blue and the sand a brownish red. Much more comforting than the previous colors he had seen. Several heart beats pass, and he realizes that only three heart beats had passed inside that world. an eternity had turned out to be only seconds. The shortness of breath began to recede, and after an agonizing 35 heart beats he was almost back to normal. Just a little shaken, but mostly normal.

He sits back on his haunches. "What..." he asks a bit breathless, "What _was_ that?"

Sheriff offers his hand out and Finn takes it gratefully. "That was the mechanisms of the mind." He says rather simply, "Sort of an inner world inside your brain. It changes and grows as your experiences grow." He pauses for a moment, "... but i haven't encountered one quite so _bright_ is a while."

Finn frowns, "But shouldn't it be opposite? I've seen and done some... questionable things."

Sheriff shifts his weight, "Not exactly. Sometimes they do play by the normal rules, and sometimes they don't. My world is black and white, but I don't see the world that way." He pauses trying to find a better way to explain it, "it either reflects the way you want to see the world, or how you don't."

Finn nods, "so... did you figure out my mutation?"

Sheriff nods then, "The sun in your world exploded when I dug at your mutation, and you absorbed the excess rays."

Silence. Everyone waited for Sheriff to continue.

"OH!" he looks a bit embarrassed, "Sorry. I forget that stuff like this doesn't really make sense outside of his head.

"The explosion in the grenade and the sun is mostly energy, and you were able to absorb both blasts. Your power is energy manipulation!"


	6. Chapter 6

They end up working with Finn's power much more than they had anticipated. It was a very dynamic and odd one, and everyone wanted to observe as he pulled the energy from a plant, wilting it, and putting it back it. Several times he stole the energy from fires, plants, batteries, ect. ect... but he always had to expel the energy. Almost as soon as he absorbed any it made him extremely tired and unfocused. Doc guessed it was because of the sudden imbalance of his body's natural order, and that his body immediately kicked into high gear as a fail safe in case he couldn't get rid of the excess energy.

"Do you think you could pull the energy out of a person?" Lightning was the one who asks. The question had been on the tip of everyone's tongue, an with the threat of the Mafia looming over their head they would need any offensive moves as they could get.

Before Finn could even respond, the racer let out a loud gasp, "Do you think you could absorb the energy from one of Fillmore's force fields?"

Alarm spread across the hippies face. He had never thought about it, but his force field were, essentially, just balls of hollow energy. Finn raises a brow at him, silently asking him if it's alright that he tried. Fillmore shrugs and creates a small sphere in his hand.

Finn did not like to use his power. He had to focus on one thing at a once, and couldn't let his mind linger almost at all. A spy had to be constantly aware of his surroundings, but when he used his power he may as well be blind to it all. Raising his hand, he brushes his fingers lightly across the sphere and watches as it seemingly effortlessly shrink and disappear. As soon as it's orange glow fades out of existence, fatigue pulls at Finn. He releases the energy in a wave of warmth and lets his back relax from it's straight edge position.

Fillmore looks... spooked, to say the least. His eyes are wide as basketballs and his mouth hangs open a little. "Wow." he says simply, not expecting to hate that as much as he had.

It soon became apparent that Finn had worn himself out for the day, and they began to move on to other mutants. Lightning had actually been jumping up and down at a chance to go next. Doc had begrudgingly allowed him to train next. Lightning was always trying to see how far he could stretch his power, the most memorable being when he produced a knife during one session and neatly cut off his finger. He had wanted to test if a new appendage would grow or if he would have to put the finger back. Sally had almost fainted. As it turned out, both hypothesis were true. He could hold the separated finger to the nub and it would reattach, but if he waited long enough a new finger would grow.

"Okay, okay, I discovered something new about my powers, and I need to test it out!" the rookie exclaimed.

The racer searched around the small group before his eyes locked on Ramone. He grabbed the man by the arm and tugged him to the front. "Uh, Lightning? What do I have to do with your training?" It wasn't uncommon for Lightning to need a helper, but usually is was Sally or Sheriff.

"Take off your jacket!" he ordered, before taking a big gulp of his water. At Ramone's hesitation, lightning made a 'hurry up' motion with his hands.

With a slightly worried look on his face, Ramone shrugs off his jacket. underneath the bright purple jacket he has on a simple white t-shirt. Lightning takes another small sip of water and swallows it.

A moment passes.

Suddenly, Lightning's hand shoots out and snatches up Ramones right arm. He pulls his forearm up to him mouth and drags his tongue slowly across a red scrape from a sharp car part. Ramone's eyes widen with shock at the quick move, and his whole body tenses. As soon as Lightning releases his hand, he yanks his arm back to his body swiftly.

"Dude, what the hell!" Ramone goes to angrily wipes away the spit, but freezes mid stroke.

Lightning is grinning like a maniac, eyes sparkling with pride. Ramone looks up at him in shock. "How...?" Lightnings smile widens and Ramone just stares at him.

Sheriff looks between the two for a moment before sighing, "What happened?"

Ramone snaps out of his starring to glance at the Sheriff. Before speechlessly holding up his arm, the same one that _used_ to have a long, angry red scabbing cut across it. Now, it was perfectly smooth, fresh skin. No red scab, no scar, no nothing.

"You... have healing _spit_?" Holley asks, astonished.

* * *

"Finn?" Doc smiled, before nodding to the seat next to him. Finn made a 'go ahead' gesture and the man sat down across from him.

After Lightning had revealed his new power, they had worked to see how much it would heal. It occasionally worked on scars, but most of the time it left them there. It helped ease some of Lizzie's arthritis pain and gave a tiny bit of relief to headaches, but it would close open wounds very quickly. They assume because of the easy access inside the body, but more tests were required to affirm the theory. But it seems the more he licks things, the more something new occurs- a headache. Lightning got a headache. Lightning had a lot of things happen to him in his life- falling off a building, getting hit by a car, falling into a cactus patch, but he had never gotten a headache. His powers prevented that. So the phenomenon had been a very new and very distressing experience for the 25 year old, and he had gone to sit in his cone with all the lights off.

Training had lasted about thirty more minutes after that, but it had mostly been listlessly standing around and making new comments about powers. After they had officially ended training, Finn had come to unwind at Flo's V8.

"So," Doc glanced around and leaned forward, "When do you suppose there'll be another wave of Mafia men?"

Right down to business. "Soon." Finn answers bluntly.

Docs eyes harden, "Are you sure?"

"I've done my research. He'll want this to be the final wave, it's already cost him men and money. He wants me dead, so this will certainly be a fight to remember." Finn answers levelly.

His face is grim, "Are we ready?" He asks seriously.

Finn glances out the window where Mater is laying in the sun, lazily swirling a twig in the air. His heart sinks.

"No." he whispers softly.


End file.
